Laughter, music and food filled Riverhead’s Hilton Garden Inn Wednesday afternoon as local business representatives, government officials and community members gathered for a free event called “Wheels, Wine and Networking.”

The evening get-together was held between 6 and 9 p.m. Wednesday partly in effort to raise awareness about the transportation services BoltBus has been providing East End residents since last December, including commuter trips between Riverhead and Manhattan.

“We’ve getting really good feedback from folks in Riverhead because there’s not a lot of options here,” BoltBus president Michael Schoolman said of the event. “And people love using the hotel here because the lobby of the Hilton is basically your waiting area for the bus.”

He added the company’s retention rate has been high due to “good pricing,” which is competitive with commuter trains, and amenities such as free Wi-fi, extra leg room, leather seats and a charger for every seat.